Even though other media outlets are just getting around to reporting a nationwide 27% fall in July real estate sales, regular readers of OC180NEWS have been aware of a drop in OC real estate demand for weeks. In fact, a quick review of our biweekly countywide reports indicates that OC has already pulled out of the just reported national slump in demand.

After a four week pause, Orange County residential real estate once again started sliding toward a buyers market. With the number of homes for sale – aka supply - continuing its relentless upward climb, sluggish demand, and the number of distressed homes growing, this market is more and more favoring buyers over sellers. We run the numbers for the two weeks ending August 19, 2010.

In this article we continue our monthly reporting on completed sales of residential real estate in West Orange County. Unlike some other sources, we don’t use zip codes to combine Rossmoor and Los Alamitos, and we use our neighborhood level detail to separately report Leisure World and the other areas of Seal Beach. The City of Seal Beach is divided into College Park East, College Park West, Leisure World, Old Town, and the rest of Seal Beach, sometimes referred to by realtors as Seal Beach North of PCH.

Destruction from bad real estate loans, recession, and unemployment continues to take a toll on West Orange County residential real estate. Even though June marked the sixth consecutive month of job growth in Orange County{see related article below}, , the number of people who are on the verge of losing their homes in Seal Beach, Rossmoor, and Los Alamitos has not improved much since our Unlisted Distressed Properties Report last month.

In this article we report on the prices for completed sales of residential real estate for Seal Beach—College Park East, College Park West, Leisure World, Old Town, and the rest of Seal Beach—Los Alamitos, and Rossmoor. Here we present a comparison of sales during June 2010 and June 2009.

In some West Orange County neighborhoods the number of homes on the market is about double the unlisted properties which are in some stage of the foreclosure process—in others, the distressed properties are much more than the total of all homes currently on the market. In this neighborhood report, we consider the unlisted distressed homes as of June 17, 2010.

What has happened to West Orange County Real Estate prices during the last year? In this article, we report on the prices for completed sales of residential real estate for Seal Beach—College Park East, Leisure World, Old Town, and the rest of Seal Beach—Los Alamitos, and Rossmoor. Here we present a comparison of sales during May 2010 and May 2009. There were no transactions in either period for College Park West.

Year to date residential real estate selling prices for the Old Town section of Seal Beach fell 11%, while the rest of Seal Beach experienced at least modest increases. In this neighborhood analysis, we consider transactions through April for this year, compared to the same period in 2009.

A review of current pending foreclosures for Los Alamitos reveals more homes facing foreclosure than homes on the market. This article reports on detached single family residential real estate for Los Alamitos, and offers some comparisons to the real estate market in Rossmoor. Since Rossmoor and Los Alamitos share a common zip code, these two different markets are often reported as one market. In this article we consider these areas separately.

More homes came on the market in Orange County during the last two weeks then at any other time since the supply build up began back in January of this year. At the same time, demand for homes, which had been declining continuously since April, finally held steady during the most recent two weeks. Distressed homes on the market, the other key OC residential real estate statistic we track here at www.OC180NEWS,.com, showed no sign of slowing its relentless growth. We run the numbers for the two weeks ending July 22, 2010.

If you are considering buying an Orange County home, now might not be the best time. The three key factors we track – demand, supply, and distressed homes – all continue to move in the direction of transitioning from what was a sellers market, into what could become a buyer’s market. The number of homes on the market continues to increase, demand keeps falling, and, despite our improving job market, the number of distressed homes on the market increases steadily – we run the numbers for the two weeks ending July, 8, 2010.

Although the changes were relatively modest, the supply of Orange County residential real estate continues to grow, while demand slips again. The number of distressed homes on the market also continues to expand. We run the numbers for the two weeks ending June 24, 2010.

Trends in Orange County residential real estate favored buyers for another biweekly period. Supply and the number of distressed properties on the market, both continue to increase, while the number of new pending sales during the last 30 days (demand) fell again. We run the numbers for the two weeks ending June 10, 2010.

For the second biweekly report in a row, the Orange County residential real estate numbers moved in favor of buyers, rather than sellers. It is still a sellers market in the lower ranges—below $1 million—but during the last four weeks, demand has fallen while supply has increased. We run the numbers for the two weeks ending May 28, 2010.

In a trend reversal, demand for Orange County residential real estate decreased considerably, while supply—the inventory of active real estate listings—continued its upward climb. As a result, market time—average time a house might be on the market—increased for the first time in five biweekly reporting periods. We run the numbers for the two weeks ending May 13, 2010.

In our last biweekly report on Orange County residential real estate, we reported the first decrease in distressed homes on the market since last fall. As it turns out, that was not the beginning of a trend. As the federal first time home buyer credit expires, demand surged to levels last seen in 2005, and supply expanded only modestly. We run the numbers for the two weeks ending April 29, 2010.